The Reiter Perspective

12-3 win over the Yeti last night. What can you say about the overall team effort in the win? Effort was great.

How do you compare Noah now to when he was just starting to play in the league 2 years ago? Obviously he just keeps getting better and better. You could say he has gone from good to great pretty quickly and still has plenty of potential to be even better.

You guys remain unbeaten on the season with 1 week to go. Was going undefeated in the regular season a goal of yours going in or have things just fallen into place for you guys? Things have just fallen into place, the undefeated record has never been a concern.

You could very well see the Eagles or Yeti in the Finals again this season. What kind of series are you expecting when they go up against one another in a couple weeks. Would expect that to be a very good, close series. But I’m not sure what the Eagles goalie situation is, so that could throw a twist into it, good or bad.

You were off all summer and all fall before this season took place. Did you enjoy the break before the season started or were you anxious to start back up again? I enjoyed the break but enjoy playing hockey too. The winter league in Reynoldsville is probably the best fit for me.

You have been on a lot of different teams in your XHL career. Which ones stand out as some of your favorites? I’ve been on lots of teams and played with many different players and great people...but the standout team would have to be The Contenders from back in the early days of the league. For the most part, that was a built from scratch team made up of some of my good friends that just wanted to have fun playing hockey. We were so pumped that there was going to be a league in our area to compete in. And we did compete, winning our fair share of XHL hardware. I think we lived up to our name.

Are there any XHL games that stand out to you as the most memorable? From the Contenders days there are some games that I still have some pretty vivid memories of. The first game that comes to mind is during the league’s 2nd season in 2002. We had the honor of playing the Punishers in the first round of the playoffs. The Punishers were an elite team, they annihilated everyone during the regular season, never lost and won the championship. They would score 20+ while their opponent would score 2 goals at the most, on a good day. One of those playoff games against them, we actually gave them a game in the sense that the final score was 13-7 I think. Even though it was a loss, I’m very proud of that game. The other game that stands out is the 2003 finals where the Contenders won game 2 in OT to win the title. I remember lots of moments from that game. I do not recall anyone else but our own team believing we could win it all. To me it is the greatest game that I have been a part of.

You, Bob and Adam are XHL originals. Do you think any of you have slowed down out there considering you are all in your 40s now? I’ve probably slowed the most, meaning I can’t go full tilt for an entire game. Bob seems unchanged. Adam is also still very good.

Some people around the league say you are the toughest player to go up against. Do you take that as a compliment? Of course.

Pittsburgh sports are in a slump now. Which team do you think has the best chance to come out of it first? Not the Pirates. I’m encouraged with the amount of draft picks the Penguins have over the next few years but I think that will just take some time. I would say the Steelers have the best chance to turn it around the fastest if they can get the quarterback situation right.

Do you enjoy reading Foradori’s final thoughts or don’t you read them? I skim over them and sometimes find a nugget or two worth reading.

We all know who the stars of the xhl are, but who do you consider some of the leagues better role players? Nate Galentine, Ben Rossi, Ryan Johnson, Tyler Stitt are some names that come to mind.

Which goalie gets in your head the most (past or present goalies)? There isn’t a goalie that gets in my head.

What sports did you play in high school and what did you learn through playing them? I played football for the school team, and outside of school I played a little baseball and of course hockey where I could. Probably a lot of stuff I could name as things I learned but one thing in particular would be focus and better handling the mental game of competition.

Got any random thoughts to throw out there regarding the season so far? It’s been a good season so far, looking forward to finishing it out strong.